WSM - Legs/Thighs

Decided to try legs and thighs today on my WSM. I had such great success with the pulled pork, I had a hard time going through the weekend without cooking something else.

Meahorn's post prompted this as his chicken looked so great.

In lieu of wings, I decided to go with THIGHS!

Here come the pics:

I mentioned I was shy with the rub for the pulled pork, NO MORE!



1 chunk of hickory


Load it up, legs on bottom, thighs on top. I reckon thighs need to cook at a slightly higher temperature.



I cooked these at about 230 with higher spikes than I would normally allow during my cooks. Meahorn mentioned he cooked them for 2-2.5 hours. I cooked them for 2.5 hours.




Because of the low and slow method, it was new to me not to see the crispy skin, so I had trouble believing they were done. I actually ate several and put the rest on to cook more at ~270*. I read how they can be finished directly over the coals to crisp the skin, this seems a bit cumbersome with a WSM but I may try it next time.

The result was great, moist, so very flavorful, not too much smoke, great rub.

And I have leftovers for lunch this week...

 

looks awesome. I don't have a technique for crispy skin, but I'd love to hear some suggestions. I usually just rip it away and go straight for the meat.

 

I think that in addition to quite a bit of fat, the skin is high in selenium.

 

Looks yummy.

For smoke + crispy skin, you have to cook at a higher temp. That means, for the WSM, leave the water pan empty. Aim for a temp around 350. You could probably do 400 for chicken halves or quarters. No water makes it a little harder to keep the temp steady, but it's not too difficult (or particular). Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. I think this also makes the chicken more juicy, though I do enjoy that slightly dryer, smokey flavor too.

I usually do this with a couple of beer can chickens. Only downside is that you can't cook this at the same time as most most other smoker meats, which require a lower temp.

Other option: when the chicken is about 10 degrees from being done, stick it in your oven, preheated to 500. Keep an eye on it, and in 5-10 minutes, the skin should be crispy.